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60. Named to the World
At the bottom of Dunvegan Castle's crypts, deep below the earth, Clwyd, Pyt, Wilfred, and Aerendyl's former teacher and mentor, Rangrim 'Frostbeard' Son-of-None have succeeded in slaying the Rumidian Northern Margrave, Magnus MacLeod, as well as his brother Tormod, and, following a harrowing, near fatal encounter, have even managed to take their patron, the erinys Alekto, alive. ** After a brief rest to recover where they could, and with Rangrim healing the persistent poison Alekto had inflicted on himself and Wilfred both, and with Wilfred dispelling the Hell Gate, the party got ready to start back upstairs and reunite with Aerendyl and their crew who were holding the crypt entrance. ** Rangrim cuts Alekto out of of his plate armour, then Clwyd helps the tundra dwarf tie the erinys up securely. Rangrim is happy to sling the 8-foot-tall devil over his shoulder and carry him the whole way, intending to gift him, still alive, to the River King in the middle of the night, when the phasing moon would be full. ** After freeing a group of castle servants and some members of Clan MacCaig who had been tied up awaiting sacrifice in the ritual to open the Hell Gate to Alekto's domain, the party were able to learn a little of what had happened in the castle grounds since the riots in town began. The MacLeod men, as well as three of their sept clans - the Beaton, MacCaskill, and Cremmon - started trying to gather up servants for their dark ritual, when it was clear that the party's efforts in town had prevented more townsfolk from coming to the castle. When the remaining two sept clans - MacCaig and Harald - learned some of what was happening, they started fighting back, trying to protect the civilians. Thus, a full armed conflict broke out within the halls and grounds of the castle. Fingal MacCaig, formerly the head of his clan, had already been slain. But Gavina Harald had been holding a choke point in the castle's Manor House for most of the day, with a great many of the household staff safe behind her and her men - including the MacCaig men she'd appropriated. ** When the group described some of the magic items that had been taken from Aerendyl, a few of the servants were able to give them some information. Jean au Antilla MacLeod, Tormod's wife, had been seen wearing bracelets that matched the descriptions of the ones Aerendyl usually wore, and the one servant had seen the folded up form of the portable hole in Cecilia MacLeod's possession. ** One old male servant agrees to show the party through the castle, using the servant's staircases and passageways, which should hopefully be less occupied even in all the confusion. ** Once the group make it back to the first subterranien layer, they saw that Aerendyl and their junior crew members had been in a fight of their own - they were busy forming a barricade out of fallen castle guardsmen to tighten up the stairwell into even more of a bottleneck. Since the party had slain the guards Tormod had sent to relay the order of not bringing any more sacrifices, this group had tried to bring more servants through under duress. Aerendyl, the two quicklings he'd had with him, and the team had dealt with them without suffering much themselves, and the four servants they'd rescued were hiding in the corner, scared but unharmed. However, one of the guards in the group had escaped back above, and was no doubt ready to bring reinforcements crashing down on them any minute. ** The party decide to send their crew away at this time, since the primary job of getting Aerendyl back was done. They were still under the effects of Rangrim's Wind Walk spell so they could escape the castle with ease, and they were to return to the Drunken Dragon and make sure it was safe in the growing riots. ** The six MacCaig guardsmen were able to arm themselves with the weapons of the slain. They herded the group of servants - now numbering 15 people - into the annex crypt where the party had found Aerendyl, among Cormorant MacTavish's more ancient ancestors. The tight quarters offered the highlanders their best chance of defending the servants; slim though that chance was, it was better than trying to get the group through the castle grounds while William MacLeod, head of the castle guard, had the place locked down. ** After concocting a little bit of a plan, Aerendyl's new ally, the short human man named Alric, opted to stay with the defenders as well - the party would pick him up as they returned this way for their escape. * Aerendyl, Clwyd, Pyt, Wilfred, Rangrim, and their old servant guide ascended from the crypts back into the castle tower, then snuck their way into the castle proper. There was only one thing they were looking for before beating their retreat, so Rangrim cast Locate Object: Portable Hole. Between his magical sensor telling them to go up and the servant guiding them through the halls he's spent his life walking, they were able to make it without incident. ** They stood at an intersection of hallways. Around the corner, two guards watched outside a door, and Rangrim told the group that the portable hole was indeed in that room. ** The group told the old servant to flee, and then readied themselves for a fight. ** But before they can begin planning, the guards take notice of them and attack! ** One is able to bang loudly on the door and alert those within of the threat, even as Rangrim and Clwyd swiftly deal with the duo of highlanders. ** When the door opens, Clwyd looks up at the tall, angular form of Cecilia MacLeod, who swiftly conjures a Wall of Fire right on top of Clwyd and down the corridor far enough to burn the rest of the group as well. ** Aerendyl manages to dispel the wall before it can wreak too much havoc, using almost all of his remaining magical reserves to do so. ** Then a blonde-haired succubus also reveals herself in the room, attempting to use its deadly charm Clwyd, but to no avail, for Clwyd has the Dark One's Own Luck! ** Rangrim, himself running very low on magical reserves at this point, activates his Guardian of Nature spell, wreathing himself in primordial magic and causing water in the air to condense and freeze around him - showing off why people call him Frostbeard. The spell turned him into a monster at close range, and he set to an all-out attack on the succubus, trying to kill it before it could shift to the ethereal and flee. ** Clwyd was able to buy Rangrim some time, with a successful Command spell halting the succubus's escape, but it ultimately proved to be not enough. Despite their best efforts, the fiend got away, phasing into the ethereal, telling Cecilia she would bring her sisters to help. ** Cecilia is revealed to be a powerful warlock, not unlike Clwyd. She teleports the group around the room, locking them out in the hallway for a time, and seems to harbour a particular hatred for the little goblin agent of Telphousila before her: she burned Clwyd badly with a Hellish Rebuke - or would have, if Clwyd's Fiendish Resilience hadn't been set to resist fire damage - and subjected her to the worst pain she'd ever felt in her life with a successful casting of Power Word: Pain - Wilfred tried to Counterspell this but was Counterspelled in turn with the last of Cecilia's spell slots. ** In the chaos of the fight, with Cecilia looking hurt, Clwyd crawled through her pain to get near the highland woman, and then cast her Thunderstep spell, nearly killing Cecilia, but unfortunately also knocking Aerendyl unconscious with the concussive blast and hurting a few of her other allies besides. ** Maddened and seemingly terrified, Cecilia tries threatening the group with Aerendyl's life, grabbing his limp body by the throat and screaming out, 'do you value his life?!' When no answer is fast coming, Cecilia nearly kills Aerendyl in one move with a devastating Shocking Grasp spell. ** Pyt saves Aerendyl's life with a timely Healing Word and Aerendyl can use his innate magic to teleport away from Cecilia. ** At the end of her rope, Cecilia runs to the window and swings her way out of it, casting an at-will Levitate spell to send her up towards the next storey's windows. ** She almost got away too. But as she fumbled with the window from the outside, Pyt grabbed a stone paperweight off her desk and lent out the window so he could Catapult the thing right at her, ultimately killing her dead, and sending her body to impact the ground four floors below with a wet thud. * Cecilia MacLeod had been slain, but now on two counts the party were aware their enemies would soon be coming for them: the castle guard would be mobilising in their general direction, and the succubus was going to bring back the other two to this very room. They needed to move fast. And to make matters worse, Rangrim told them that before he changed spells, he could tell that Cecilia had been carrying the portable hole, so it now lay on the ground outside, where their enemies would be converging any minute. ** Wilfred can't afford more than a cursory glance around the room for valuables. He grabs four mithral goblets that were on display on a shelf, and a quick casting of Detect Magic leads him to a hidden compartment behind a cupboard, where a little ragdoll figure is radiating hellish magic. ** Clwyd recognises the thing as one of the more disturbing ways some devils form contracts: the doll was one of a pair, and the two parties in the contract kept one each. Clwyd pockets the thing and, horrifyingly, despite it not appearing to move in her hands as she touches it, it feels like it's wriggling about and resisting her grip. She stuffs it into a pocket and wipes her hand off a few times. ** The group decide to use Wind Walk to go down to Cecilia's body, with Alekto, still unconscious, tied to Aerendyl's back after he wildshapes himself into giant spider form - Aerendyl is not under the effects of the Wind Walk spell, and Rangrim can't cast it again; besides, they can't leave Alekto. ** On the ground, they root through Cecilia's pockets with haste, grabbing a little velvet pouch with some gemstones inside, the infernal iron necklace she was wearing around her neck, and indeed, their portable hole. ** Then they return to the castle crypts in a hurry. They were going to use the underground river in the cavern where the hell ritual was taking place to escape, with Rangrim casting Water Breathing with his final remaining spell slot on everyone he needed to, including Alekto. ** Since Rangrim could wildshape himself into a water-breathing animal and Clwyd still has her Cap of Water Breathing, after including Alric and the rest of the party, there were enough spaces for Rangrim to cast the spell on five of the servants hiding in the crypts too. The party selected those that looked youngest but still able to swim, hoping they would be able to explain the nature of the things that had gone on in the castle - as per Wilfred and Clwyd's agreement with the mob boss Siegfried to bring proof out of the castle that the MacLeods were devil worshippers. ** As they descended to the bottom of the crypts, some of the party grabbed a few imp corpses that they hoped would also serve as some proof of what had been going on. ** Then the group swam away, eventually coming out into Lake Dunvegan in the night. A bit of searching and they find the Drunken Dragon out on the waters being manned by their crew. Reconvening, they're able to return to the docks relatively quickly - the docks now a significantly more hostile and riotous area than they were the last time the group had seen them; many of the merchant ships had fled, and most of those that hadn't were either burning or being looted. ** The party got off the ship, sent the rescued servants on their way, and had their crew sail back out to the safety of the open lake waters while they finished what they'd started in the city. * The party and Rangrim, with Alekto still near naked, unconscious, and trussed up on the dwarf's shoulder, made their way to one of the city gates Clwyd had destroyed earlier that night, the Lady's Gate, the one near Smoke Street, where the riot had spread out from. ** Rangrim is able to teleport himself and Alekto up onto a rooftop that overlooks the mob scene still going on around both sides of the now-destroyed gate. ** A thundercrack boom with Clwyd's Thaumaturgy quietens the area enough and draws attention to the party. ** Wilfred also fires off a Flame Arrow into the sky for added flair and attention grabbing. ** Then Pyt addresses the mob, spinning the tale of how Clan MacLeod had fallen into devil worship, usurping the place of Clan MacTavish with foul magic, and how they had been kidnapping and killing the citizens of Low Town for their sick ends. Finally, he tells the group that a 'devil king' by the name of Alekto was successfully summoned, but that they the crew of the Drunken Dragon had slain said creature - at which time, Rangrim booted Alekto off the roof so that he dangled in the air from the rope the dwarf held, sending a wave of shocked gasps from the now-silent mob. ** The group added to the effect by throwing the imp corpses down in front of the crowd. ** Pyt's speech had been moving indeed, and the devil corpses they'd shown the crowd had had the desired effect, yet there was something more. Aerendyl noted that among the crowd some of the people he'd seen in and about the Maiden's Kiss were influencing others around them with various strategies - Siegfried's men were taking advantage of the situation. * The group swiftly departs into the shadows of some back alleys, not wanting to be swept up in whatever direction the mob wanted to head next. Further, Rangrim refused to hand over Alekto, intending the devil to go to the River King no matter what. As they wound their way back to the city's docks, avoiding fighting and riots where they could, the group were met by a familiar, high-pitched voice coming from the darkness of the next alleyway. ** The gnome from the Maiden's Kiss, the one the dwarf had seemed to always speak through, told them there was no longer any need for pretence. He introduced himself as the true form of Siegfried, and he told them that they'd honoured their deal with the Family well this day. ** Siegfried says that the group have proven themselves a capable bunch and that they're the sort the Family is always inclined to keep close. Should they find themselves in the right sort of seedy bar in the future - hopefully, he says, they can again find the right sort - they need only tell the barkeep 'they're heading to a reunion.' When the barkeep asks whom they intend to reunite with, they say 'their uncle Siegfried.' That will be enough for them to meet with the Family in the area. ** Siegfried says that he hopes this little gift will make up for the way he must ensure these recent events are told. These riots, the fall of the margraves, the coming conflict, the potential war - he intended to pin all of it on the party, and he ensured them that the Family would turn a profit on it all, whichever way the fighting ended up going. Such infamy is something many folk of the sea spend their lives hunting for, so perhaps they might come to see it as a gift. ** Siegfried says he'd like to do the group the courtesy of having the world get their names right. And so he asks them, what are they to be known as, to the world. *** Aerendyl says he is the Amaranth Watcher *** Clwyd wiggles her charred right hand a little, saying she is the Black Hand. *** 'Spitsilver Pyt,' is what the bard settles on. *** And Wilfred gives his moniker as La Targa Azure. * It's a fairly simple matter for the group to return to the ship out on the lake at this point. They spend a tense few hours waiting for the moon to reach its zenith so Alekto can be given to the River King - he wakes up once during this time, but Rangrim knocks him unconscious again. Clwyd doesn't allow any premature celebrations until this duty is taken care of. But once 1am comes and the moon has waxed full, Rangrim dumps Alekto through the waxy white-orb reflection that's formed next to the boat and their work for the night is truly complete. * Everyone cheers! Poppy brings out a couple barrels of wine and mead she'd stockpiled during the festival's early days and Wilfred gets out the new mithral goblets he'd appropriated so that everyone who'd recently joined the crew of the Drunken Dragon - Poppy and Poe Tenpenny, Taylor, Garret, and even Poop the Brownie - can have a proper drink and an official welcome. The group celebrate long into the night out there on the waters of Lake Dunvegan, with the city and sky above glowing with riot fires on their horizon. ** Wilfred takes a moment to talk with Rangrim, asking about the dwarf's time training Aerendyl and what he's going to do from here. Rangrim replies that he spends most of his time in Faerie these days, and he's likely to return there quickly. The place agrees with him. When the gnome asks if he has any advice on the party's dealings with the River King, Rangrim glances up at the now-waning moon and tells Wilfred not to extend trust in the fey's direction, and to remember that speaking no word that is a lie has never hindered a high sidhe from being deceptive. ** Clwyd apologises to Aerendyl for nearly killing him. They conclude it was just another one of those things that tends to happen around them from time to time. ** Pyt sees Garret sat by himself, staring into his unfamiliar reflection and having a little cry for the killing he'd done that day. Pyt offers a few kind words and makes Garret feel better, then the duo marvel as Garret's lightning feet dangling in the water are attracting small fish and subsequently killing them. ** Aerendyl and Wilfred have a long chat. The elf tells the gnome that ultimately, he thinks Wilfred is a good person, as hard as that is to be sometimes. Wilfred appears unconvinced. Aerendyl goes on to say that even though he personally doesn't have a great deal to gain from going to the Frostflows - the deal with the River King didn't include him, after all - he still finds himself wanting to go, to help the group, and to say thank you for the deal Wilfred made. The gnome replies that he should know it wasn't just him - they all three made the deal they needed to in order to save Aerendyl: Pyt, Wilfred, and even Clwyd. He says that Clwyd might not show it well, and they might fight and bicker often, but she obviously cares about Aerendyl, and about all of them really. They are each the same in that the world hasn't left them with many people to rely on but each other. ** As the celebrations carry on into that curious time of day where you don't know if it's really late or really early, Aerendyl finds a moment to share a drink with Alric, Son of Eric Son of Fjor. He thanks the man again for his help and says that he's welcome to join their fledgling crew if Alric is so inclined. The man chuffs and says he's honoured, but that he has obligations that require fulfilling back in his home, the Black Sands Spring. After that, perhaps he can consider the offer. He suggests that since the party seem to be heading through the Frostflows now anyway, the Black Sands Spring might be as good a place as any for them to start their journey into the ice - and Alric can show them the way. ** Wilfred goes and consoles Pyt a little bit about how they're hunting witches instead of looking for a genie. Pyt is a bit sulky about it all the same, but seems resigned to their fate now - just another year. ** When some of the drunken sailors have stumbled into hammocks or collapsed into heaps of rugs in the deck cabin, Aerendyl and Rangrim can have a final, quiet moment alone at the bow of the ship. The dwarf tells his old student that often the only difference between the decision to be cowardly or brave in a moment is how much preparation you've done beforehand, and that this group - gesturing to the ship as a whole - are chaotic and messy and incongruous, but they might well be what Aerendyl has been looking for without knowing it. They might indeed be good for him. But they need temperance. They need someone to see the things their quick decisions miss, someone to stoke the fires when the go low, but to call halt on the bellows when they grow too hot. His metaphors become more trite and he soon devolves into grumbling and saying that his point was made. With no more ceremony than that, Rangrim wildshapes into a snowy owl and takes his leave. Category:Part Five